75 Ah Balling Peanut Soup
Hawkers of SG #70 – 75 Ah Balling Peanut Soup
We used to be a roadside stall. In 1975, we opened our first hawker stall at Golden Mile Food Centre. The unit number was #01-75, so we decided to call ourselves 75 Ah Balling Peanut Soup. Though we only moved in in 1975, this brand dates back to 1947. Today, we have three different outlets across Singapore, and my husband and I run the one in Golden Mile.
We reach the stall an hour before it opens to set everything up, prepare the “ballings” and the soup. Till today, we still make sure to prepare our peanut soup from scratch everyday. While other stalls may focus mostly on the ballings, we feel that the soup is what truly completes the dish.
As third gen owners, we are met with the challenge of staying relevant while continuing to be known as the “traditional” ah balling. Over the years, the food scene has become so saturated and we find it difficult to introduce ourselves to the younger generation. But that didn’t stop us from trying new approaches, like tapping on Instagram and experimenting with new balling flavours like Matcha and Yam.
It will be tough, but my husband and I chose to continue this legacy. We found it a pity that many stalls with long histories slowly die out. To push on, you really need to have a bigger goal in mind, almost sort of like a dream. Hopefully, 10 to 20 years down the road, people can still get to taste this, and think to themselves “this is 75 ah balling”.
In fact, during my hawker journey, I have heard so many heartwarming stories about the stall and its origins which continues to invigorate me. We’ve constantly heard customers in their 40s-60s, coming up to us, telling us that they used to have our ah balling at the roadside stall – “My mama brought me here, so now I’m bringing my kid here”.
I recommend everyone to try our peanut soup. It is still the same recipe as 70+ years ago, and we prepare them fresh daily. People may be wary of it being gelak, but this is far from the truth – it’s creamy, smooth and so easy to drink. Also, depending on the season, the peanuts can either melt in your mouth or be crunchy! Place your orders here!
75 Ah Balling Peanut Soup (#02-113)
(Delivery available via WhyQ)